The Abysswalker
by Mcrabbidrabbit
Summary: In the original lightning thief, Percy gave Grover the winged shoes. What if Percy had worn them instead? What if he had been dragged all the way to the pits of Tartarus? What if he decided that he was not only going to survive, but he was going to escape?
1. Prologue

**Here's a new story for you guys! Don't worry about the other ones. I will make sure to be finishing them as well. College is taking top priority for me right now though, so updates will be slow. This is only the prologue, so it will be a bit shorter in comparison to the chapters. The chapters will be six thousand to ten thousand words each. I already have the plot lined up for this, so things like polls to decide where the story goes wont happen. Without further ado, let's begin!**

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Prologue - Into the maw of Hell

 _Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you. When you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you.  
-Friedrich __Nietzsche_

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Percy found that there were many ways to fall.

One could fall over themselves, trip, hit the floor, and sport a bashful hint of red on their cheeks, as their nearby friends made fun of their clumsiness. One could fall off a ledge, grabbing a minor injury as they land, possibly even something major, like a fractured bone. One could fall in battle, fending off hordes of monsters, possibly for heroic reasons, possibly for a girl, possibly for the ever present though of "oh my Gods, oh my Gods, I'm going to die!"

Percy also found that these were all preferable to the current fall he was taking.

He supposed this was what he got for being greedy. Luke gave him a pair of winged shoes at the beginning of their quest, a gift that he was extremely grateful for. He briefly considered giving them to his best friend, Grover Underwood. He wanted to do it because he figured that Grover would be at an extreme disadvantage if they came to a fight. But then he considered his friend's status as a protector, and his status as a satyr, and though "hey, he'll be able to take care of himself. They wouldn't make him a 'protector' if he couldn't!". Instead, he gave Grover responsibility over the pearls that would teleport them home.

That was a grave error in judgement. The stupid winged shoes opened up, and dragged him down to Tartarus. He tried many a time to retract the wings as they dragged them along the ground. He supposed it made for an interesting scene, a twelve year old preteen shouting "Maia!" over and over as he got closer to the pit of the underworld. In retrospect, he actually preferred himself to be the one to have worn the shoes. He would never wish this fate upon Grover, or Annabeth.

He had been falling down this hole for a long time now. He didn't know exactly how long. He knew it was longer than a week, but not much passed that. Multiple times, he tried using the winged shoes, to no avail. The panic he had felt during the beginning of the fall had long since turned to resignation. He would either die when he hit the bottom, or die of starvation before that. He didn't know what happened when you died in Tartarus, but he didn't think it was a much wanted option.

Eventually, that resignation turned to fear and panic. His mind conjured images of his soul being tortured down here for all eternity, his sanity breaking from the pain like a window against a bat. He had prayed to every God and Goddess he could remember, starting with his father, going through each and every Olympian, praying to minor Gods, river Gods, then back to the Olympians. He had finished praying to Dionysus again, before realizing that the Gods either didn't care about him, or their power didn't reach him down here.

He didn't know if wanting the later option made him an optimist or a pessimist, but he found that he didn't quite care either way. He continued thinking about nothing, before his stomach rumbled again. Searching his bag, he took out his last bit of ambrosia. He could never eat much of the stuff at one time, it would kill him if he did, but he could eat a little. Given that he had no other alternative food sources, he didn't have much option. He almost popped the piece into his mouth, before stopping and thinking back to one of his lessons with Chiron.

"To commune with the God's, a chain must be made between you and them. This can be done with praying, but the chain is often strengthened by sacrifice..."

He hadn't much payed attention in that lecture, and didn't know the specifics, but he did know that campers would often sacrifice food to the fire during lunch and dinner. Not only that, but they often sacrificed the biggest piece of food.

" _The more important it is to you..._ " Percy though " _...the more likely they are to respond_ ".

Perhaps it was desperation. Perhaps it was flat out fear. If he was thinking logically, he likely wouldn't have sacrificed his last, and only, piece of food left on a theory that he didn't know would work. Nevertheless, Percy took his lighter out of his bag, cupped his hand to keep the wind from blowing out the fire, and burnt the ambrosia. As he did, he prayed with everything he had.

" _Anyone_ " he though " _Anyone that can help me... please..._ ". For a moment, there was nothing but the constant rush of wind. Percy almost lost all hope. Then, Percy saw something he hadn't since the beginning of his fall

Light.

Percy shielded his eyes, as the God's light before him nearly burned his retinas. Tentatively, he opened them to find a transparent image of a blonde haired man with a bow on his back staring back at him. Apollo.

Percy began to cry tears of joy.

"Cousin Perseus"

"Lord Apollo" Percy replied, wiping his eyes.

"We will need to be brief. Although your sacrifice has strengthened the bond between us, it will not last forever". Percy nodded in reply. He didn't know the exact magics behind communication between God and man, but he figured that if it ran on a type of fuel, someone's last piece of ambrosia was like running of fumes.

No time to waste, then.

"Can you get me out of here?" Percy asked.

"...The pits of Tartarus are strong. My image's personality here is already changed to something like my older, Greek personality because of it. The power required for a transportation would me more than what I have dominion over. To teleport someone is already a difficult task for me, unless they have some affiliation with the sun. My hands cannot reach the Underworld, let alone Tartarus". A thousand questions flooded Percy's mind from the speech. He ignored them, in favor of more important topics.

"Are there any other Gods that could do it?"

My father, if he was in a generous mood. Or Hades. But I do not think it possible for me to convince them". Percy knew he was right. Zeus hated him right now for "stealing the master bolt", and Hades was in a similar mood towards him, so that scratched those two out.

"...So there is no way, then..."

"Without any magical item to help us, no". Apollo said. Percy was silent, as his head lowered.

"Then I'm dead" Percy replied. Apollo looked at him for a while.

"To be banished to the pits of Tartarus is a fate worse than death. Man, Titan, giant, monster, and God alike are all trapped down there, unable to escape"

"That's reassuring"

"But that does not mean escape is impossible"

"It's escape-able?" Percy asked.

"Indeed. Though it is no simple task. The road you travel is one that immortals have failed to bear, let alone demigods... I will be frank with you. I am not sure I could do it myself"

"Then how on earth would I be able to?"

"You have... advantages that I do not. Tartarus is not just a place. He is a being, a primordial, stronger than God and Titan alike, born of Chaos, and tempered by it. Should I try to leave the pit, he would take notice. He would stop me. But you may be just weak enough to go unnoticed when making your escape".

"So your saying that I'm so unimportant, that he might not notice when I try and leave?"

"In a way, yes" Percy didn't know how to feel about that. Apollo continued, "He does not expect anyone of your stature to be able to escape. The beings down there make sure that non-immortals stay in their torment. But if you were strong enough to defeat anything down there, while also being weaker than an immortal, you might not draw his gaze".

"Okay... so that's my game plan then? Take down the monsters, don't let Tartarus catch me."

"It is not that simple. Among the pits of Tartarus lies many creatures of incredible power. You faced Echidna and Chimera on earth, correct?" Percy nodded, not sure how Apollo knew that, before writing it off as God knowledge. "Down here, they would be even more powerful. And others, such as the drakon's, put them to shame. You may even encounter Titans. To survive, you will need to be far more powerful. As it stands now, I am not sure you could defeat a simple hell-hound in Tartarus"

"Great. Well, I can't do much training till I get down there, considering my current situation. What do you suggest?" Apollo shook his head.

"While you will need to train, it alone will not suffice. You need powerful weapons, honed abilities, and the like. Until you can gain these things, it is best to lie under any monster's gaze"

"Powerful weapons? Abilities? Where am I going to get those?"

"Tartarus is an ancient place, older than I. There are many secrets down there waiting to be discovered. You will find what you need."

"But until then, I'm basically screwed..." Apollo looked at him for a bit.

"I can give you my blessing". Percy's gaze rose to the God's image. A blessing? He didn't know exactly what it would do, but it sounded pretty good. He briefly considered asking why Apollo was so willing to help him, before he mentally slapped himself for wanting to question the blessing of a God.

"What do I need to do?" he asked.

"To be blessed by a God, it requires a task, or another sacrifice. Is there anything left in your bag?" Percy nodded, opening his pack, and taking out his water canteen.

"My last bit of water" He said. Apollo looked at it.

"It isn't much... are you willing to part with your winged greaves?" Percy was confused for a moment, before looking down, and noticing that the tennis shoes were now a pair of celestial bronze greaves, with two white-feathered wings on either boot. He wondered at this for a moment, before passing it off as Tartarus changing the things around him. He looked back to Apollo.

"Not unless there's no other way. If I can find a way to make these things work again, they'll be invaluable down there". Apollo sighed a bit.

"The water isn't much... but it will initiate the bond between us. Casting this heavy a bond on such a small sacrifice will drain this image of most it's power. Our time to talk afterwards will be short. Stretch out your hand, and shield your eyes". Percy did so. There was a flash of light, and the water canteen left his hand. Percy opened his eyes. Above him was a glowing rune, similar to the one that appeared over his head when Poseidon claimed him as his son. It showed the image of an arrow crossing through a lyre, before it dissolved.

"My blessing upon you is weak, but a connection has been made" Percy nodded.

"What does it do?" Percy asked.

"Currently..." Apollo said "...very little. You are able to summon a weapon of my armory, _Fosakopti_ , but you cannot use it to it's full extent. You also have minor power over the conjuring of light. Other than this, I cannot give you anything more". Percy nodded his head. If he could find a way to survive the fall, then a new weapon and powers would certainly help him survive down in Tartarus until he could find a way out.

Rather, _if_ he could find a way out.

"Thank you, Lord Apollo" Percy said. Apollo did not acknowledge the thanks, but instead continued.

"To strengthen the bond, I require a task to be performed" Percy nodded in reply.

"What do you need?"

"Days after my birth, I slayed a great Khthonic drakon. Since it's death, it had been an enemy of my house. Upon each resurrection, it continues to wreak havoc upon my domain, killing my children, and destroying those blessed by me. Currently, it resided in the pit, waiting it's next resurrection. My task for you is this: Destroy the drakon's soul, and banish it from existence evermore"

"And this will strengthen our bond?"

"It will. From it, you will gain..." Apollo stopped, as his image began to dim.

"Perseus, I fade! To survive the air Tartarus, you must drink of the river Phle..."

Whatever was going to be said by Apollo's image, it didn't get to finish. The last of the image's power was spent, and it faded from existence. Percy spat a string of curses that his mother would slap him over the head for using. Following this, Percy realized he had absolutely no idea how to summon the weapon Apollo spoke of, nor how to use his newfound powers, nor how he would even survive the fall in the first place.

Percy spat a longer, and harsher string of curses at this.

Then, he kept falling.

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Percy was asleep when he reached the bottom, and the only way he survived the fall was because of a suicide attempt.

The last light Percy saw was from Apollo, so his eyes had grown accustom to the dark yet again. When he reached the cavern of Tartarus, light flooded his eyelids, and actually woke him up. He had a second to register that he was now in a cavern, falling towards blood red clouds that loomed over the ground of the pit, and then he began to panic.

"Maia!" He shouted.

His greaves did not respond, nor did they respond when he shouted it again and again.

As Percy fell towards the floor, every fiber of his being screaming at him to do something, some back part of his mind briefly registered the size of the place. From this altitude in the cavern, he could see from end to end over the red clouds. The place could easily fit the island of Manhattan, with some room to spare. As Percy fell through the air, he reached the red clouds. His vision was obscured for a moment, and then he came out the other end.

Planes of black, shard like rock accompanied with a red mist greeted his eyes. Percy took in a breath, and began to panic more, as he realized what he was breathing wasn't air. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if he was breathing some gas form of blood. It supplied his body, but he knew it would kill him in a few minutes. If he would survive the fall, that is. He looked around for any way to break his fall, any hill where he could catch an angle to lessen the impact.

There was none.

The only thing he could see was a river. A river of lava, no less. And there, racing towards his doom, with no air in his lungs, tired, starving, and with no hope, Percy let a darker side take him. He looked to the river, and thought to himself "No way out. All the trouble I went to with Apollo doesn't even matter. But, if I die, I want to die in water, like a true son of Poseidon . I don't really have that here, but that river seems like the best alternative".

"Who knows?" Percy thought, as he stretched his hand out and concentrated. "Maybe my water healing powers also extend to lava". It was a nice little last fantasy. Some child's hope to indulge before you die. Percy was actually surprised when a tendril of lava came swirling from the river, directly below him. He then felt a wave of exhaustion hit him. Percy closed his eyes, and thought of his mother and father.

He had braced himself for extreme heat when he hit, with blackness following it. Instead, he was nearly put into shock by how cold the river was. His eyes opened in shock, not a smart idea when in something so bright. He immediately closed them as he came sinking down. For a moment he was weightless, holding his breath in the river, still surprised by the lack of death.

He hit the bottom of the river. He tried to swim up, but found that the liquid was too thick. Furthermore, he found himself tumbling along, swept by the slow current. He grabbed onto a rock protruding from the base of the river, it's jagged edge cutting into his palm. Ignoring the pain, he slowly started to crawl along the riverbed, and to the bank. As he began to feel a slow ache in his lungs, he tried to get some kind of equilibrium.

He continued dragging himself, the glass-like stones of the river bed cutting along his body. The river's... lava? Whatever this was, seeped into his wounds, burning them as though it was liquid salt laced with acid. Slowly, as though he were moving in slow motion, he clawed his way through the river. His body burned, demanding oxygen. He still clawed. His muscles ached, demanding relief. He still clawed. His mind blackened, demanding rest. He still clawed. Eventually, he took a breath of the river, just to get _something_ in his lungs.

That was a mistake.

Icy coldness wracked through his body. He threw up in the river, a mixture of bile and blood sweeping around him. It sank into the cuts on his hands and arms, burning them even more than the river did. Despite this, he did not stop crawling his way up. After what seemed like an eternity, his hand shot out into open air, and he sank his fingers into a pile of glass-like gravel. He pulled himself up, gasping the red-misted air.

He sat on the bank for a moment, his legs still submerged in the lava river, before dragging himself into a sitting position. He began to look around, still gasping. The place was _cold_ , like he had suddenly been dropped into the Arctic. Added to that, it was dark. Though the river illuminated the surrounding area, It may as well been a pitch black night down here. Percy doubted any sun would rise over this place either.

Pillars of jagged obsidian rock shot out of the glassy surface of the ground, like bones sticking out of the raw flesh of a broken arm. The place smelled like a catacomb, as though even the dead had died and rotted to an extent no person thought possible. Despite the cold, the air burned Percy's skin, giving him blisters. He felt a slow burn in his body, and realized that this air would kill him if he didn't-

A snarling, black _something_ slammed into him. They rolled, before the thing ended up on top of him, and began clawing away at him in a frenzy, as though it would get some kind of prize if it killed him in record time. Flesh ripped under the things claws, and Percy gave a pained shout, before getting a leg up, and kicking the thing away. It gave a wail, as Percy got to his feet and reached into his pocket.

Percy had a moment to realize that Riptide, his sword, was no longer a pen, and instead was a wooden hair-clip. He mentally groaned. Of course it wasn't a pen anymore! His shoes were greaves, his sword/pen was now a freaking _hair clip_ of all things, he almost drowned in a not-lava river, and he was probably gonna die to the first monster he met out here! He stopped his mental tirade in favor of figuring out how to, firstly, not die, and secondly, figure out how to turn it back into it's sword form. He looked across at the creature, noticing that it was a black-feathered harpy. The thing did not resemble any kind of human, as many harpies did. Instead, it was some strange, bipedal raven thing with no feathers on it's twisted face.

The harpy growled, and began to circle him. Percy looked at the hair clip in his hand, trying to find some way to get it into a sword, before looking back up at the harpy. The creature then charged him. Percy, finding no other option, simply broke the clip in half, and swung. By the grace of some God or Goddess out there, as there was certainly nothing else watching his back right now, the leather hilt of _Anaklusmos_ met his hand mid swing, and the celestial bronze blade sliced through the creature's arm, as it's form slammed into him.

The two were carried back to the bank. This time, Percy ended up on top, slamming his knee down into it's abdomen, and getting his free arm on the creature's... well, only arm. He raised Riptide, it's point at the things throat. It did not even register the threat, as it reached up, and clamped it's jaws into Percy's left shoulder. Percy gave a hiss of pain, and felt his collarbone fracture, before he plunged the blade forward.

In the struggle, Percy missed it's throat, but he did manage to slam through the harpy's sternum. It gave a wail as the blade passed through it's torso and nailed the monster into the gravel below it. Percy stood, and noticed that the thing had not turned to dust, as he was accustomed to seeing them do. Instead, it breathed haggard breaths, and looked at him with pure hatred. Percy was even more surprised to hear the thing speak.

"You will find no rest here, demigod!" it said in a shrill, nail scratching voice. "The pit's of Tartarus will claim your soul, and you will become our plaything to torture for the rest of eternity, while we await revival. Then, when we overthrow the Gods, we will drag them, and all your loved ones down here to-"

Percy interrupted the thing by grabbing the hilt of his sword, and tearing up through the creature's throat, and out the top of it's misshaped skull. Bits of gravel and blood arced off the tip of his sword, before he twirled it, and let it rest at his side. He wiped it's blood on his jeans, thank the Gods those hadn't miraculously changed on him, before looking back to his sword. He fiddled with the blade for a moment, before tapping it's tip, and watching in turn back into a now-reformed hair clip.

" _Quite the welcoming party..._ " Percy thought as he tentatively touched his shoulder, which ached in pain at him. He watched with interest as the ground underneath the harpy swelled up, and claimed it. The creature sank, and Percy got a nice look at thousands of maggots appearing out of nowhere, eating the flesh off the harpy. In a matter of seconds, they already reached the things bones, before the gravel formed back over it, and it disappeared from sight.

Percy plopped back down in the gravel, not quite enjoying the sharp, rocky texture that met his butt. He began to realize he was shaking, and without really knowing why, he began to weep. He sat there for a minute, dried his eyes, licked his cracked lips, and focused himself.

" _Alright!_ " Percy though _"Let's focus up. Problem number one. The air is killing me. How to fix that?_ " Percy sat in thought for a moment, before remembering Apollo's last words to him. What did he say he needed to do to survive the air? Drink from the river Phle-something? Percy sat for a moment, before he looked to the lava river next to him.

Somehow, Percy knew that some kind of immortal was laughing at him.

" _Well... I don't have many alternatives, do I?_ " Percy thought. He made his way to the bank, and slowly dipped his hand in. Even though he took quite the dip in the river, he was still instinctively afraid to touch it. As Percy's fingertips touched it's surface, he felt the same cold as before. He shook his head, released a breath, and plunged his hand in. He brought up a handful of the river's lava, some of it's glowing magma flowing off his pinky in a stream back to the river.

Slowly, he brought it to his lips, and sniffed. The stuff had no scent, other than sulfur and char. That only made him trust it even less. With a shaky breath, wondering if he was about to kill himself on accident, he downed the fire. Percy nearly threw up, as the stuff suddenly turned hot, and scorched down his throat, stinging everything on the way to his stomach, and finally settling as a low burn in the pit of his abdomen.

Somehow, me managed to keep the stuff down, as he felt the toxic effect of the air leave him. Lucky for him, though, the river had no other healing properties, leaving him with a flurry of injuries to tend to. In fact, the stuff seemed to take pleasure in causing him as much rend as possible. Percy's eyes welled up, this time with tears of pain, as he coughed, and tried not to vomit anything back up. Percy sat back against a large obsidian rock, and surveyed his situation.

He was in the hell of hells.

He was surrounded by, literally, millions of things that wanted to kill him, and nearly died to only one of them. Not only that, but it was one of the most minor creatures he could think of.

He had a fractured shoulder, dozens of cuts across his palms and arms, and some tears in the skin of his abdomen from the harpy attack.

He had no food.

He had no drink, other than this river.

He was armed with only a sword, and powers over water that he only had a rudimentary understanding of how to control.

He had a blessing of a God that he had no clue how to use.

He had no allies.

His friends were currently being entertained by Hades, for all he knew.

He very air wanted to kill him.

He was going up against monsters that some of the minor Gods would be wary to fight, Titans that could probably kill him as soon as they could blink, and one of the most powerful primordials in existence.

" _Welcome to Tartarus_ " Percy though.

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 **There's the prologue. Reviews, favorites, and follows are all much appreciated. Any questions that aren't too spoiler-y for the plot will be answered at the top of the next chapter. As always, have a good day!**


	2. Chapter One: Silence

**Alright, first chapter! No questions yet, so there isn't any answers to give. So in place of them, I'm gonna give some basic things about this story real quick that I didn't mention in the prologue. None of this is spoiler-y so feel free to read it with a sound mind.**

 **1) Percy will not have any help from any humans/demigods while down in Tartarus. He will be teaming up with someone you meet at the end of this chapter, but other than that, he is utterly alone down there. Nobody's coming for him, nobody will accompany him, he is isolated.**

 **2) No romance. Again, Percy's alone. Even if he wasn't, there still wouldn't be romance. There isn't enough room in Tartarus for that kind of stuff.**

 **3) There will be no scenes showing any of the outside world, or their reaction to Percy falling down Tartarus. To do that would ruin that mood of isolation I've built up. It's sorta like the movie** _ **Gravity**_ **. If we saw scenes of earth during the movie, we wouldn't feel the same amount of alone-ness that we do without them. Think of it like this, Percy doesn't get to see scenes of his friends, so you won't get to see scenes with his friends.**

 **Secondary note: This chapter was updated by me. Sorry for being away for so long, but when I intend to get back to this story. When I made the chapter, I jumped the gun on a lot of stuff, so I intend to correct some stuff now. Chapter basically turns out the same though.**

 **Alright, enough of that. Without further ado, let's begin!**

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Chapter one: Silence

 _The process of delving into the black abyss is to me the keenest form of fascination_

 _-H.P. Lovecraft_

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Percy stared at a rock.

He had been staring at this particular rock for longer than what was considered healthy, especially considering he was in the pits of Tartarus, and could be caught and killed at any moment. But nonetheless, he studied this rock. Why, you might ask? Well, for the ten hours, or so, he had been down here, he had yet to see a rock quite like this one.

Before finding this rock, he traveled, following the river's stream, not really knowing what else to do. As he continued on, the landscape became more rugged. Sharp hills, with more spires of black stone became a common sight. Eventually, it was rare not to see such terrain. Percy made sure to never leave the lava river out of sight, in the case that he needed to go down for a drink, a task he was dreading more and more as he continued to do it.

To his surprise, the river actually did have some healing properties to it. The cuts on his hands, arms, and legs were almost all healed, the small ones scars, and the large ones scabs. His shoulder was still aching, and he didn't think he could lift it, but it felt better.

In his trek onward to nothingness, he had encountered not a small amount of monsters. So far, he had excellent luck hiding in the most uncomfortable of places in order to avoid getting his intestines ripped out. Once, he had to contort himself around a crevice of rock to hide, bent backwards at an awkward angle to avoid being seen. Then, the monsters he was hiding from decided "Hey, now's a pretty good time to take a break!", and he was left in that position for nearly half an hour, before they moved and he could sneak away.

During his travels, he was taking notice that the creatures of Tartarus were all moving like a stream towards one point. Somewhere, in the east area of Tartarus was a place where these monsters were going, and he assumed that's where they went to go back into the world. That meant most of the monsters would be found over there, which meant he should probably go the opposite direction until he was able to fight them off.

As he was thinking about this, he stumbled upon this small black rock. Now, black rocks were not an uncommon sight in Tartarus, but this one was special. Unlike the sharp edged, gritty grey-black stones that dotted the landscape, this was a light reflecting, jet black, smooth edged stone. He picked it up, more out of something to fiddle in his hands that wouldn't cut them instead of any real interest. Once he felt it, he noticed that it was actually a metal.

As he followed the lava river, which he had now lovingly nicknamed "the liver", he had accidentally dropped the stone. Normally, the stones of Tartarus were incredibly easy to break. It was actually a great inconvenience, because the more he broke them, the more sharp edges he could cut himself on. When he dropped the stone, he expected it to shatter on the ground. He was surprised when the stones beneath him shattered instead.

He then picked up the rock and looked at it. No cracks. No chips. Not even a scratch. The stone remained the same as it was. Out of curiosity, he reared his arm back, and gave the stone a good toss over to a nearby spire. The rock spire cracked when it hit, but again, the stone remained flawless. Percy continued doing all sorts of things to try to break the rock. He threw it, threw other stuff at it, smacked it against his forehead, which left a good red dot, and even dipped it in the lava river.

Nothing.

Percy then resolved to finally break the thing, and unsheathed Riptide. He set the stone down on a flat rock, reared his sword back, and swung. There was a _ding_ , as his sword vibrated against the metal, and the rock underneath it cracked. There wasn't even a noticeable difference in the stone. Percy growled, and swung again. And again. Over and over he hit the stone, creating a rhythmic " _ding, ding, ding_ " as he struck. Finally, he heard a small crack. He lifted his sword, and saw the results.

Riptide had chipped against the thing.

Now we find Percy studying this rock. He didn't know exactly what it was, but he knew it could be valuable. Percy pocketed the stone. If it could chip Riptide, which was not a sword to be scoffed at in terms of the quality in it's craft, and the value of it's material, then it was clearly strong. Very strong. Something he could probably use.

Percy continued on for a while, before his stomach rumbled. He had not eaten in a long while. He certainly wasn't going to be eating any monsters, partially because he doubted they tasted very well, and partially because he probably couldn't kill something without sneaking up on it. How did the monsters eat down here? Did they just kill each other and eat the meat?

Percy looked down to his blood stained jeans, torn and scratched. He should probably make camp. Moving around this much was good for survival in the short term, but long term, he would need to rest at some point. Making his way over a hill, he started to scout, both for monsters and possible places to hunker down for the... night? Day? Did those even exist down here?

Considering the lack of a sun and moon, he wouldn't think they did. As he thought about the sun, Percy's thoughts drifted towards Apollo. He still had absolutely no idea how to summon that weapon Apollo mentioned, _Fosakopti,_ nor had he figured out how to use his "light powers". He tried everything he could think of, such as willing the thing into his hands, saying the weapon's name, saying the weapon's name backwards, praying to Apollo, flipping off the sky, and so on.

Percy sat down under an outcropping of stone, taking his backpack off. Deciding now was a good time to take inventory, he opened up his sack, and started to sort his items. He had a spare, orange camp shirt, a light jacket, an extra pair of tennis shoes, a flask he had been keeping spare river fire in, and some drachmas. Percy considered the tennis shoes for a moment, before placing them back in his bag. He slipped the jacket on, trying to fight the cold, as he looked at his winged greaves.

The bronze boots still didn't work. Even so, their metal, while a bit uncomfortable, made them great for walking across the rocks, which would surely tear apart regular tennis shoes. Percy looked up to the blood red clouds, and realized that this was his first moment of peace in the pit that had tormented him for the last ten hours.

With peace, came thought.

Percy thought about his friends, and their quest. He wondered if they were still in the underworld, or if they had gotten the master bolt back from Hades. The thought of them being dead was a bit surreal for him. Considering he had survived this long down here, and yes, ten hours is a pretty good record all things considered, he didn't think they would find much trouble surviving up there.

Percy leaned back, and sighed. Perhaps he had just been lucky so far. In fact, he was almost certain that he was just lucky. He had yet to even run into any major monsters so far, let alone things like drakons and titans. If he was going to be down here for any extended amount of time, then he would eventually run into those things. Percy felt a cold sweat, at the realization that he would, in fact, be down here for a while. Perhaps forever. Though his stay had been torturous so far, perhaps he had yet to even scratch the surface of the pain in store for him here. It wasn't a thought he enjoyed having. As such, he moved his thoughts to something else.

The prophecy was still confusing. "You shall go west, and face the god who has turned. You shall find what is stolen and see it safely returned. You shall be betrayed by one who calls you friend. And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end". The more he thought about it, the more he thought that the prophecy applied to someone like Annabeth or Grover, instead of him.

"You shall go west, and face the god who has turned". Did that. Well, in the process of doing that, for his friends at least. Or done with it. He didn't really know. "You shall find what is stolen and see it safely returned". Well, if that was any indication, and if this applied to his friends, than they would succeed. "You shall be betrayed by one who calls you friend". That was a grey area. Was their friend his winged shoes? He didn't know. Lastly, and the line that made him come to the conclusion about about the prophesy not being about him, "and you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end". He might be a bit selfish for thinking "what matters most" would be him, but he had a inkling suspicion that it was the case.

Percy could see it in his head. Annabeth and Grover standing before Zeus, having delivered the master bolt, asking the god to take Percy out of Tartarus. With a shake of the head, and a small chuckle, Zeus would deny them, still angry that Percy even existed, and that the oath was broken. Percy gave a "tch" at the imaginary scenario. He didn't care. He didn't need a God's help to get out of here!

" _Except you, Apollo_ " Percy thought. " _Your awesome_ ".

With these thoughts on his mind, Percy's eyelids became heavy. He took one last swig of the disgusting river fire, and felt tears stream down his face as the stuff burned down his throat, and painfully cleared his sinuses. Percy wiped his face, closed his eyes, and used his spare shirt as a pillow, bunching it up, and going to sleep for the first time since his stay here began.

* * *

Percy awoke to an empty stomach, toxic air, and the sound of marching.

" _One problem at a time_ " Percy thought.

Percy uncapped the small flask, still half full of river fire. As quietly as he could, he drank the stuff down, trying his hardest not to let out any moans of pain as he did so. He drank all he had, and placed the flask back into his backpack. For the sake of his life, he couldn't close the zipper, lest he give himself away. He looked down to his stomach, and patted it.

" _You'll have to wait a sec. I got bigger issues_ " he thought.

Percy looked out of his little outcropping. Shadows of various monsters, some that he recognized, some that he didn't, passed by. They were right above him. Luckily, it seemed as though they couldn't smell him over the scent of each other, and the rotting-corpse smell of Tartarus. As Percy waited, he listened to the stomping/slithering above him.

This wasn't a stray group. These things were organized. They were all marching in single file, not to mention that there was more than he had ever seen, or rather heard, collected in one place. There had to be three or four dozen of them, not to mention anything that might be flying above him. As he listened to this war machine trug by, one sound eclipsed all of them. He heard a giant clanking of armor, and heavier footsteps than anything he had felt.

Percy looked out to see the thing's shadow. It was a bipedal... something, standing a good ten feet tall, and from what Percy could make out, it was dressed in giant armor. The stuff clanked together with the sound of cars crashing over and over again. As it came over his position, it's footsteps actually shook the small outcropping he was stationed in, sending small pebbles down on his head.

Just as the creature came over him, the thing's shadow stopped, and held up a hand. The rest of the monsters stopped as well. Percy closed his eyes, sweating as he heard the thing give two deep sniffs. There was a moment of silence, and the thing let out a growl. Percy prepared to dart, until he heard the thing speak.

"Bring me the slaves" it said in a deep rumbling voice. There was some scurrying as Percy held his breath. A minute passed, until the sound of rattling chains hit Percy's ears. The monster shifted, it's armor clanking, and turned towards the "slaves".

"Which of you was last thrown into this pit?" it asked. Percy was surprised when he head a human voice respond.

"M-me sir" a male voice responded. The voice was shaky, whether from pain, or fear, Percy couldn't tell.

"How long ago?"

"F-fifty y-years or s-s-so" he replied. The creature gave a displeased grunt at this.

" _Good gods..._ " Percy thought " _...fifty years down here?_ "

"Where there any other demigods that fell down with you?"

" _Demigods!_ " Percy thought

"N-no, sir" the demigod said. "Just me..."

"Captain?" One of the other monsters asked in a slithering voice.

"We may have a few new demigods to find down here in Tartarus..." the captain said. His shadow turned. "I smell an odd scent. I smell human flesh, but something else as well... the sea... and the sun..."

"A spawn of the sea god, and another of Apollo?" The slithering voice replied. " _Fatetonilio_ will be pleased". The captain's shadow shook it's head.

"The scent is not separate... it is one... the scent of the sun is weaker... Apollo's champion, maybe..."

"Shall we give chase, captain?"

"No. We have more important tasks then to chase unfortunate demigods, but we will tell our lord what we found when we return"

With that, they marched onward. Percy held his breath until he could barely hear them in the distance, and then let out a gasp. He looked down at his hands, and saw that they were shaking. He clenched them, zipped up his pack, peaked around the corner of his outcropping to make sure nobody was around, and made his way down to the fire river.

His thoughts swirled in his head like a whirlpool, as he made his way to the bank of the river, and refilled his flask. That wasn't a pack of wild beasts. That was an organized military. They had a captain, they had slaves, and they had some kind of "lord", who they presumably took orders from. They marched in single file, and they were returning to a certain place which they came from. If this was any indication, that meant they had been on a mission of some kind.

Percy didn't know what to think of this development. If there was an organized military down here in Tartarus, then that meant there was something opposing this military. Percy didn't know much about the nature of monsters, but he did know that they were vile, repulsive, and above all else, dominant. When there were two strong monsters who both wanted control, there would be a fight. It wasn't entirely unlikely that there was some kind of faction system down here.

" _And..._ " Percy thought " _...these groups probably have food as well_ "

Percy looked down to his stomach. He had not eaten in days. No matter how much river fire he drank, he would eventually die of hunger if he didn't get food. Percy sighed, running a hand through his hair. He could kill a stray monster and eat it, but he didn't know if that would poison him or not. Added to that, he didn't really have a way of cooking the stuff.

" _I cant steal from that group though..._ " He thought. " _That's too dangerous. I'll probably die if I try it_ "

But he could also die of starvation. Added to that, he didn't know of many places down here where he could find food.

" _Think of the demigods as well_ " He thought " _How long have they been down here? If that one guy had been here for fifty years, then how much longer had the others been trapped in this hell?_ "

" _You could save them_ " He thought.

No... no it's too dangerous.

" _What if you were them? Trapped in their chains..._ "

He couldn't. He was just one demigod.

" _That 'one demigod' is their only hope..._ "

Percy looked down at his hands, and looked to the direction that the group of monsters had gone. He sighed, took out riptide, and the hard stone from earlier. He skimmed it along it's length, using it as a whetstone. If he was going to do this, he would need a sharp blade by his side if he got caught.

As he did this, he tenitavely checked his shoulder. Sleep had done the thing some good, but he wouldn't be able to use it much. Percy looked at his slightly glowing sword, continuing to run the strange rock down it's length. As the sparks flew from the edge of his sword, he looked up to the red clouds.

" _Gods, give me strength_ " He thought.

" _Especially you, Apollo_ "

* * *

As it turns out, it wasn't particularly hard to find the group of monsters.

A single file line of creatures ranging from five to ten feet tall stomping along a plain made of fragile rock created quite the distinctive trail. Following it wasn't hard. Percy's tracking skills had never been put into practice, but you didn't exactly need tracking skills when following the equivalent of footprints in three-foot deep snow that had yet to be disturbed by any other living beings.

Luckily enough for him, the track stayed relatively close to the lava river. He had yet to need a drink, it had only been around thirty minutes since his last one, but he liked it being close by. From the conversations of different monsters he had overheard, they apparently didn't like this river. It had something to do with the smell. This group was probably just using it for a guide. Even then, he noticed that the tracks gave the river a wide berth.

After a half hour of tracking, he came upon them. They were camped out in a small valley. Their camp was in the midst of a series of spires, almost enough to call it a small forest. Despite the short time they had to set up, they already had fires blazing, strange black nest-like things dotting around the landscape where they rested, and guards posted around the perimeter. He took further notice of something burning on a spit over the fire. His stomach rumbled at this.

" _The demigods take priority right now, Perce_ " he thought.

He scouted the camp, looking for the slaves, before spotting them. Three of them were chained to a large rock, all sitting, and looking down with broken gazes to the broken rock beneath them. Percy couldn't exactly tell from this distance, but they somehow looked to be in their late teens, at best. It seemed as thought you didn't age very quickly down here. Next to them was two snake-like monster guards with pikes in their hands and nets on their belts.

" _They'll need to go..._ "

But that was the easy part.

The hard part was that they were in the middle of the camp. This meant Percy would need to sneak all the way in, not be spotted, kill/distract the guards, free the slaves, and get them out before the camp could realize they were gone. If he had the opportunity, he would try to grab some food, but that was secondary to his main goal.

Best get to work then.

Percy spent the next hour watching the guard patrols. Most of them were stationary, and just kept their heads/snake faces on a swivel. Percy could deal with that. There were plenty of gaps in their perimeter that he could slip through if he was quick enough. The harder part came afterwards. The monsters in the camp were not on guard duty, which meant they moved around with as much freedom as they wanted. This led to a lot of variables.

To get around this, he started mapping out the spire formations, and seeing which ones he could use for cover on his way towards the demigods. After careful planning, he found a route. On the left side of the camp was a set of guards. In this set, there was a small gap where he could slip in. After that, there was a series of detours that followed the spires closely, and stayed away from major nests.

With the snake guards... he didn't really have a plan yet. He could sneak up and kill one, but the other would notice. At the end of his planning, he just decided he would roll with it when he got down there.

" _Speaking of which_ " Percy thought.

Percy slid down the hill he was perched on, and into the forest of spires. As he bobbed and weaved through the pillars, he tried to keep mental track of where he was. Though he had pretty much memorized the path he was supposed to take, he still found it difficult going from an overview perspective to a first person. Finally, and perhaps with a bit of luck, he came across the gap in the guards.

Percy took a quivering breath, and realized he was shaking. He stilled himself, squeezing his eyes shut. He looked to the guard on the left, about twenty meters away, and to the guard on his right, about the same distance. Both were looking away. He took another breath, and then another. Just as he was about to run out, he spotted a guard coming out of the camp. He stopped right across from him, and leaned against a pillar. Percy ducked behind his pillar, trying not to make himself known.

"Hey, they got you down here, scum!" the snake guard on his left said.

"Scum!" The guard across from him said. "I'd more save that word for when your looking in a mirror, you hopped-up piece of hell-hound sh-"

"I wouldn't finish that sentence! Were almost all alone out here, and your not a very popular guy in this camp! Not a lot of us would miss you if an 'accident' happened!"

"I'd like to see you try it! You'd be in the ground as maggot food in three seconds flat!"

"Keep pushing me, and maybe I will!"

"Hn!" The guard across from him said. They both looked away from each other.

He took a quick peek at the new guard. Where had he come from? As far as he knew, the camp hadn't been switching guards out. Alright. New plan needed. Think Percy, think! What could he use here? The two guards obviously hated each other. Could he turn them against one another?

Percy looked down at his feet, and spotted a plain, sharp rock at his feet. He picked it up, careful not to cut his palm on it, and re-open one of his many scabbed wounds. He looked to the guard on his left, then to the one in front of him. Neither were looking his direction. He gave a quick prayer to the gods, and threw it as hard as he could at the snake-guard, and ducked behind the pillar.

" _Dear gods above, please don't let it see me..._ " he thought.

He heard a cry of pain, and some rustling.

"Oh, that was a mistake, you pile of harpy trash!" the guard said. He then rushed over to the guard across from him, and tackled him, both biting, clawing, and scratching at each other. The guard on his right noticed the commotion. Percy thought he might try and break them up. Instead, he invited some of the others guards over, and they started to cheer on the fighters, and place bets on who would win.

As the guards were looking towards the fight, Percy sneaked around them, and into the camp, his heart beating so violently that he could feel it in his throat and wrists. He made his way to the path that he originally came up with, and began to make his way to the demigods.

After carefully maneuvering around monsters, and keeping himself hidden, he finally made it to the demigods. To his surprise, the snake guards were not there. He was suspicious for a moment, before deciding not to question his fortune. He came out from behind the pillars, and over to the rocks, uncapping riptide. He took in the sight of the other demigods. Each of them were ragged, skinny, and scarred from head to toe.

As he came around, still crouched, he tapped them, looking around for the guards to make sure they wouldn't come around. He took the closest one by the shoulders, and looked for where his chains connected, finding them wrapped around his wrists, which were linked behind his back.

"Hey, I'm here to rescue you!" He whispered. "Come on, I need you to get up so I can break you chains.

The demigods didn't even look up at him.

"Hey!" Percy said. "Come on, I need your help. Get up!"

Still, the demigods didn't even respond. Finally, Percy took the one in front of him by the chin, and forced him to look at him.

"Hey! Come on! We need to move now, before the guards get back!"

The demigod looked at him with a broken expression on his face. Percy let go of his chin, and grabbed his arms, hoisting him up. The demigod looked at him, and then looked back at the ground. Percy didn't know what was wrong with him. Was he under a spell or something? Just as Percy was about to break his chains, he heard some rustling to his right.

Percy ran back towards the pillars as the two snake guards came back. They both lugged their pikes as they walked with their heads down, until they noticed the demigod standing up. The hissed at him, and spoke.

"What are you doing up, slave!" the snake spat at him.

"Wait..." The other guard said. "I smell demigod..."

"Of course you do! There's three right in front of us!"

"No... a different one... the smell of the sea..." The other snake was silent for a moment

"...Yes... I smell it too..." The snake grabbed the demigod by the throat with it's free hand, and actually hoisted him up onto his tip-toes

"Where is it! The demigod! I know you know!"

The demigod looked over to Percy, who was still hiding behind the pillars. They locked eyes, Percy silently begging him to keep quiet. The demigod looked at him for another moment, before turning back. As the demigod opened his cracked lips, and raised his arm up, Percy then realized something he should have a long time ago.

These demigods... they were too far gone. They were too shattered to hope.

He hoisted a finger straight at Percy.

"...There..." he said in a quiet, shaky voice.

Percy ducked his head behind the pillar as he heard the demigod fall, his chains splashing onto the stone floor. Percy held riptide tight as the snake began slithering towards his position. He looked to the floor, and counted. One second. Two seconds. Three. Then, a hand grabbed onto the pillar.

Percy gave a cry of frustration and rage as he swooped around. There was a moment of surprise on the snake's face, before he was decapitated in a single, glowing swoop made by _Anaklusmos_. There was a throb of protest in Percy's shoulder, but he ignored it. Percy made to do the same with the other snake, but he had lost the element of surprise with this one. His strike was met with the pole of the snake man's pike.

"Demigod!" It shouted for all the camp to hear. "Demigod on the loos-"

Percy gave a quick punch to the side of the thing's face. It turned back, and hissed at him. Percy span out of their blade lock, and backpedaled as the snake's pike slammed down on the spot he stood moments ago. The snake pursued him, thrusting again and again with the pike. A stroke met Percy's cheek, cutting it open. Percy took notice of more monsters coming to meet him, as he continued to retreat.

Percy, having enough, dove into the snake's guard, and slammed Riptide into it's abdomen. The thing hissed in pain before Percy ripped to the side, creating a large gash in it's stomach. He reared his sword like a baseball bat, and swung back through the cut, completing the job, and cutting it in two. Percy had no time to revel in this accomplishment, as more monsters were upon him.

Percy could only dodge as the monsters swarmed him. He continued dodging, before one of the monsters, a werewolf like creature, slashed at his ribs. He kept dodging, before he took another hit, and then another. Percy gave a wide sweep with his sword, giving him a moment's reprieve. He grabbed his shoulder, looking at the swarm around him. There, in the midst of a crowd of monsters, red mist in the air, his blood dripping onto the stones, and standing under the red sky, Percy felt hopeless. He looked to the demigods, still chained to the rocks. They starred at him with the same broken expressions. Percy looked back to the crowd.

"No one gets closer!" He screamed in a voice that, to him, sounded desperate and weak. "Not a single one of you steps forwards, or I will send you into the ground!"

A rippling of chuckles went through the crowd. Percy felt a flood of fear and panic slamming into him again and again like waves on a beach. A crashing of armor hit his eardrums as he spotted a figure. A ten foot tall, iron armored cyclops came into the circle of monsters, holding a large, bloody club. This was their captain from before. Percy twirled Riptide as they began to circle one another.

"Here I am, demigod" he said, holding his arms open. "Send me down". Percy stood gawking at the giant Cyclops before him. Riptide nearly fell from his grip, before he shook himself, and grabbed the hilt. He gathered up his courage, surprising himself with his next words.

"With pleasure" Percy replied.

Percy dove forward, and then rolled to the side to avoid the monster's club. Pain from his bruises and cuts protested at him. He ran to the things calves, and sliced. He only met air as the giant jumped back with surprising agility. It grabbed a rock spire, plucked it from the ground like it was a weed, and threw it at Percy. Rolling to the side, he held his arms up to shield his face as the spire exploded against the ground in a shower of debris.

Percy was launched back, as pieces of shrapnel coated his body. He smacked against a pillar of stone, and slid down to the ground. He could only hear ringing as he coughed and looked up to his opponent. The cyclops stood, clutching it's eyes for a moment, before looking wildly for him. He spotted him on the ground, and smiled, making his way towards Percy.

Percy stood, shaky. Every movement he made exhausted him. He held riptide up with one arm. He was fairly sure his other was broken. The cyclops laughed, and walked towards him. Percy licked his bloody lips, and spoke.

"Do you expect me to beg?" He asked.

"No" The cyclops answered "I expect you to grovel".

"Sorry to disappoint" He said. He threw riptide, but the cyclops simply batted it out of the air. Percy watched it clank onto the ground. He fell to his knees before the large beast, his vision blurring, and spit up some blood. The cyclops picked him up in one hand.

"I will make a new club lined with your bones, demigod" it said. With that, it reared him back, and threw him onto the ground with enough force to turn his aforementioned bones to dust. Percy saw spots as the thing's fist came crashing down onto his ribs, breaking them. He gave a scream of pain, and felt a sagging his chest as his left lung was punctured. The monster then stepped down on his legs, cracking them. Percy heard them break with the sound of icy branches being snapped in half.

Percy heard screaming. It took him a moment to dully realize that it was his own. He heard the cheering of the crowd as their captain laid waste to him. He felt the pain in his body as a disconnected thing, as though it were in another life. Like a memory he only had a basic recollection of. He looked to the sky, wondering if he should pray to the gods, before throwing the idea away.

His last few days had been hell. He had been disconnected from his friends, fell down an abyss, gained a number of wounds, and been forced to drink the most disgusting thing he had ever drank in his life. He had gone on a fools hope that he could survive months, possibly years, down here, and eventually make an escape. In reality, he only lasted a day, mostly by luck. He had been cold, afraid, scared, and now he laid here, broken under a monsters grip. He now knew how the other demigod's felt. He didn't want salvation. He didn't want to be rescued.

He just wanted to die.

But fate would not have that.

Just as Percy fell unconscious, there was a slam, and the cyclops turned to see a giant, fifteen feet tall, kneeling on the ground. It stood. The monster had the bottom half of a drakon, and the top half of a giant. Over it's shoulder, it had a sack full of something that dripped enough blood to leak through the burlap. It looked over to the cyclops and down to Percy's unconscious form. The crowd of monsters gave him wide berth.

"Are you here to challenge us?" The cyclops said. "You know you can't touch us without our lord coming to punish you"

"I'm not here for you" it said. "I'm here for that demigod" The cyclops looked to the demigod below him.

"Why? You won't have this one. We plan to give him to _Fatetonilio_ "

"I know your intention with him. I'm willing to trade for him.

"What do you need a lone demigod for?"

"The sea god... I smell it on him... I have my own quarrels with Poseidon. My wrath shall be poured out on this one"

"Your wrath doesn't matter. No deal you can make will be good enough" The giant looked at him, before opening the sack on his shoulder, and throwing it's contents onto the floor in front of the cyclops. The captain looked down to see the skull and meat of a drakon.

"Give me the demigod, and this will be yours. Your lord will be happy to know you capture a demigod. How much happier will he be to know you slew a drakon, and took it's meat before it could be claimed by the ground?"

"Our lord would punish us when he learned of this trade! _Fatetonilio_ is his favorite pet, and the beast loves the meat of those blessed by Apollo!"

"Your lord does not need to know. Think about it, cyclops. Think of the glory you will receive when they find your you slew a drakon..." The cyclops looked to him, and then to the remains of the drakon, and then to Percy. He picked Percy up, and threw him as the giant.

"Take the thing..." He said. "...and don't let us catch you around these parts again, Damasen"

"Oh, you won't see me around here..." Damasen said, as he made his way back to his hut with the demigod slumped over his shoulder.

" _Not me..._ " He thought, as he scooped riptide up from the ground. " _...This one maybe, but not me..._ "

* * *

 **There's the chapter! Favorites, follows, and reviews are all much appreciated! Any questions that aren't too spoiler-heavy will be answered at the top of the next chapter. As always, have a nice day!**


	3. Chapter Two: Best laid plans

**JS: Wow, four questions! Okay, let's go!  
** **1) In short, no. I do not have ideas for filler, because I don't plan on there being filler. I'm gonna try to keep this novel-like, instead of anime-like, so if I devote an entire scene to something, it's most likely going to be, at the very least, semi-important to the plot.  
2) There won't exactly a faction war, but there will be something akin to it. I take it this is from the line where Percy wonder's about Tartarus' military? Sorry I mislead. He was just thinking whether that was the case, rather than the narration being a validation of reality.  
3) Percy's personality will change. I will not tell you how, but I can tell you that there's a good reason for it. He's gonna be in Tartarus for longer than a few days or weeks. Stuff like that changes people, but it's not something you'll see immediately. If I pull it off right, and that's an "if" considering I'm no master writer, then you'll see a gradual change. If I continue this into a series, that'll come more into play.  
4) I got most of the plot planned out, and there aren't any excessive time skips in it. **

**Thelittledeformedone: Yep. I jumped the gun when I wrote that, mostly cause I was trying to crank it out instead of taking my time. I re-wrote the scene to make more narrative sense. For any that read that part, try to ignore what happened, because he wasn't supposed to use that ability till further down the line.**

* * *

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson**

* * *

Percy awoke to the smell of a warm fireplace happily crackling under a sweet-smelling pot of stew.

He groaned, pulling his blanket up over his head, unwilling to... wait. A blanket? Percy's eyes opened as he realized that, yes, he was under a fur blanket. Moreover, the blanket belonged to a bed large enough to make Goldilocks blush. He sat up, the covers falling to his waist. He was in an over-sized hut. It's supports were made of large, curving bones that reminded him of the dinosaur exhibits he saw at museums. Draping over them was some kind of reptilian leather, making Percy wonder if this hut's creator did indeed slay a dinosaur.

Or something more terrifying.

He looked to his surrounding. The floor looked like a shoddy attempt to make hardwood with the aforementioned bones. It's various gaps revealed the jagged black floor underneath. Percy felt dread. Still in Tartarus then. Shame. With the primitive hut, fur blankets, and roaring fire, he had been hoping for a viking's paradise, but apparently he wasn't getting that anytime soon.

Percy brought a hand to his throbbing head. What had happened? He had... went to save those demigods, but... they sold him out. He remembered now. He fought like a cornered dog, until that cyclops came around and... good Gods, was he dead? That thing had crushed his body like a couple of twigs. He remembered his bones breaking under the things foot, the victory cry of the monsters around him as their leader laid him to waste.

Percy examined himself. If he was dead, then he still had a solid body. His orange camp half blood shirt was missing. He had fur bandages wrapping around his abdomen and shoulder, reminding him of an incomplete loincloth. His jeans, previously ripped up, were so poorly sewn that they seemed to have been patched by a creature that didn't have thumbs... or fingers... or just hands in general.

Save for a few phantom pains and some soreness, Percy was completely healed. His bones were mended, his cuts and bruises gone. He examined his hands. The only evidence of the cuts that lay on them before was a small jagged scar running from the top of his right palm to the bottom corner, a particularly large gash he had gained when crawling out of the lava river. His arms, legs, and abdomen were much the same, only the largest cuts leaving faint white lines and splotches.

"You've been resting for a while now".

Percy turned to the corner of the hut, where a giant sat. It's legs, a deep crimson, were reptilian. The giant had the top half of a man, save his vermilion tinted skin. He had a red beard and an equally red mop of hair on top his head. He almost reminded him of Grover, if his friend suddenly grew four times his size, hit up the gym, and decided that dragon legs were in this year.

"Are you going to kill me?" Percy asked.

"I wouldn't have nursed you back to health if I wanted that" the giant replied. Percy looked at his bandages and healed wounds.

"You... did this?"

"Not many others in Tartarus who could. Your river blessing helped though"

"River blessing?"

"From the river Phlegethon. You took a dip in it, no?"

"Did that bless me? How does a river bless anything?"

"Rivers are powerful things. Some are older than the Gods. Some even older than Titans. While the Phlegethon does not flow as true here as it does in the underworld, it was still able to grant you a weak blessing. Healing. Your wounds will heal a bit quicker than most demigods"

"I have a healing factor?"

"Healing factor? I'm not familiar with the term"

"I can heal from any injury on the spot quickly"

"No, nothing of the sort. Perhaps if you bathed in the Phlegethon in the underworld, but not down here. You do not have hydra like healing, but your wounds close about twice as fast. A recovery that would take you three months now takes one and a half".

"Oh... so.. dipping in ancient rivers gives some kind of blessing?"

"Only ones of great power. The five rivers of the underworld, Styx, Lethe, Acheron, Cocytus, and Phlegethon each grant blessings. Their flow is weaker down here, and would not grant as great a blessing than if you dipped while in the underworld, but they would bless you. One of your heroes, Achilles, was bathed in the river Styx as a child. The result made him invulnerable, and gave him a sense for battle unmatched by any other.

"That's... neat"

"Indeed" The giant said. Percy looked to him in curiosity.

"How long have I been out?"

"Three weeks. A long recovery, but your wounds were quite grievous"

Three weeks. By the Gods, he'd been unconscious in Tartarus longer than not. Also, this giant, whatever he was, had to be an amazing healer if he considered three weeks a long recovery time for the injuries Percy sustained.

"Three weeks... my friends must think I'm dead..."

"If they were smart, they'd think you dead as soon as you fell in here. The fact that your still alive is a miracle on it's own".

"Thanks for the vote of confidence"

"I do not mean to insult, but you must understand the power that Tartarus holds could destroy any mortal in an instant. Surviving down here for as long as you did is an accomplishment worthy of an inscription of your name on the pillars of Olympus".

"...What's your name?"

"I am Damasen. And yours?"

"Percy Jackson".

"I welcome you to my home, Perseus"

"Thank you for welcoming me... but... why? Why heal me?" Damasen looked to the floor for a bit, the crackling of the fire and silence holding the room.

"...Do you know the story of how giants came to be?"

"No"

"When the Gods overthrew the Titans, Gaea became outraged".

"Gaea?"

"The Primordial of the earth, one of the ones who came before the Titans. Her power is unmatched by all, even other Primordial beings, such as Ouranos, Nyx, and the being we currently reside in, Tartarus. The only one who could destroy her is her creator, Chaos."

"Oh"

"She became outraged that her children were overthrown, and the upstart Gods dwelt in her domain. But she was asleep, and couldn't face the Gods herself, so in her slumber, she bore us, the Giants. We were built to oppose the Gods. Our king, Porphyrion, is the counterpart to Zeus. Polybotes to Poseidon, and so on. I was built to oppose Ares"

"Your were made to kill Gods"

"Yes. But In making me Ares opposite, I was made peaceful, and therefore was unwilling to fight in their cause. I lived a simple life, farming, herding sheep. I helped the local humans. One day, a drakon, precious to Porphyrion, threatened to kill the locals. I killed the beast, and I was banished here, to remain evermore"

"How long have you been here?"

"I have lost count of the years. But regardless, it is not my nature to enjoy suffering. When I saw you, a demigod that wasn't broken by the monsters down here, I decided to take you in".

"Thank you..."

"Than you, Perseus. You have provided me with the first conversation I've had in centuries"

"Glad I could help" Percy said, cracking a smile. He threw the covers aside and stepped, or rather fell, down to the floor. He looked around the hut, easily the size of his mom's apartment. The fireplace sat in the middle, and against the walls racks of meat, bones, and other such things. It seemed as though Damasen was an excellent hunter as well. Not only that, but if the large slabs of meat were any indication, then his prey had to be rather large.

"Where are my things?" Percy asked. Damasen pointed to the corner.

"I am sorry about your blade"

"What!" Percy said. He rushed over to the corner, where riptide lay against his bag. A large, jagged crack ran down it's length, nearly splitting the blade down the middle. If he even swung it a few times, the entire thing would come apart. He could see faint wisps of blue smoke, the magical properties of the blade, trailing lazily from it's wound.

"I am sorry, but you must understand. My kind cannot... easily deal with celestial bronze, even when forging. Added it's small size, and there is nothing I could do for it".

"It's okay... it's not your fault. I'm the one that rushed into trouble and got it broken..."

"If you wish, I have plenty of bones and leather that you can use to make a new weapon"

"Do bones work on monsters?"

"Only the strong kind. These happen to be some of the strongest".

"Thank you... I'll get to work on it later..."

Percy sat in the corner, next to his bag. He never would have thought he would find a safe haven in Tartarus, but then again, he never would have though he'd find a friendly giant. As Percy sat, he wondered what became of the demigods that were enslaved by those monsters. He hoped they would find strength to flee soon, or at the very least, have their souls released. As Percy thought about this, Damasen spoke up.

"Hey Damasen, can I have some stew?"

* * *

The Cyclops fell to his knees as black smoke curled towards him over the stone of the temple.. He drew shaky, whimpering breaths his eyes caught his master's thin long-sword, etchings running up it's length, it's silver tip gleaming and idly tracing the stonework of the floor underneath the throne in front of him. He trembled, before lifting his arm up to his master, a salute. He dared a glance up at the figure before him, before immediately returning his gaze to the floor.

A finger lifted the Cyclops' chin. He looked up at his master. The being, comparable to a Titan, stood head and shoulders above him. Black wisps of smoke writhed around him, as though shadows were clinging to his form. The smoke enveloped the floor beneath him, snaking up his arms like chains ready to latch his body. The being's black hair fell to his shoulders where it splashed upon a dark metal breastplate. He looked into the Cyclops' eye, and spoke.

"I am sorry for not providing audience sooner, young one". He said in a kindly tone. The being's finger trailed to his jaw, where it gently pushed, keeping the Cyclops' head craned up at him.

"You need no apology, my lord! Not to one low as I". The being laughed heartily.

"My, my, child! But your words are too kind! I am not deserving of such hefty praise!"

"Of course you are, my lord!" The giant said, his confidence picking up pace. "Why, you deserve the entire world, far more than this simple throne!"

A quick flash in his eyes that passed in an instant.

"Hmm, thank you child" the being said. "You are most gracious. Almost too much so! Now, I understand you have recently made a great victory! I would hear of it!" The being finger pushed up on him, and the Cyclops stood.

"Yes my lord!" The Cyclops said. "My company was scouting when we came across a drakon, sir!"

"Oh my! How big was it?"

"Bigger than any I've ever seen, my lord! Fifty feet high! A gargantuan specimen!"

"Dear me! I imagine you ran from such a beast!"

"Oh no, my lord! My company ran in fright, but I stood my ground!

"Against a fifty foot drakon! I don't know if I'd be up to the task, myself! What happened, young one?"

"I slayed it, my lord! And before it's remains fell into the earth, I managed to skin some of it!" The Cyclops took a sack from his waist and held it high for his lord to take. The being eyed it for a moment. He then stepped forward, the single sound reverberating off the silent temple walls. He pushed aside the sack as he stood close, looking down at the Cyclops, his hand trailing on his sword.

"You know my name"

"Y-yes my lord..."

"Say it"

"S-Skourogios, my lord"

"In who's name did you slay this beast?"

"In the name of Skourogios, I slayed this drakon, my lord"

"Thank you, my child. My apologies, but it is merely a formality for this kind of thing. You understand?"

"Of course, my lord! Heh..."

"Now! We will test your strength!"

"What?"

"Oh, nothing too hard! I'm sure you understand! With how ambitious some of my underlings get, you must know that some lie in order to move up in the ranks! A underhanded trick, far below you, I'm sure! Were simply going to put you against one of my pets! Nothing too challenging! He's a thirty foot drakon, child's play for one of your caliber!"

"M-must we, my lord? You know I am strong!"

"Of course I do, my child! But you must know that if I give you special treatment, the others will grow restless! I humbly ask you spare some patience for me! After all, when you win this fight, you will receive the place of general, and a good general always has patience!"

"Of course, my lord!" The Cyclops said. Skourogios put his arm around the Cyclops' shoulder, and led him through the halls of the temple, all the while dragging his silver spear behind him, scratching along the obsidian stonework like bones scratching the inside of a coffin.

* * *

Percy his flask aside, full of broth and meat that tasted surprisingly like alligator. He ran the jagged piece of shoulder-bone against riptide's length, careful not to cause further damage to his blade. Percy was surprised by just how tough the bone was. If he got it in the right shape, and sharpened it, he would have a perfect spear head.

Percy looked to Damasen. The giant sat, peacefully sipping his stew. Percy wondered where he got the meat from, but decided to let the question be for now, in favor of different things. Percy flicked the bone across his sword one last time, before holding it up to the light. He examined it, before nodding to himself, and setting his sword back in the corner.

Percy received his rock, the one that chipped Riptide and likely caused the fracture in his sword, from his bag, and began to run it across the bone's length, sharpening it. Despite being a bone, the thing was hard as iron. Whatever beast it was, it had to be strong. This went to show Damasen's strength as well. After all, being made to kill a God would imply you needed to be fit for the job.

"Damasen?" Percy said.

"Yes?"

"I need your help" Damasen perked up, and listened. "I need to become as strong as possible if I want to get out of here, and your the only one I know who can help me do that"

"I don't understand. If you wish to leave the hut, I am not stopping you, though I think here a lot more agreeable then out there"

"...What? No, I mean escape Tartarus"

"..."

"Damasen?"

"Perseus... there is no escape from Tartarus. I am sorry, but you will be down here forever"

"Not an option. All my friends are waiting for me back home, and my mom is trapped in the underworld. If I don't get out of here, she'll be left to rot"

"Her fate is much better than yours."

"Damasen! I'm serious here!"

"Perseus. I don't know if you understand your circumstances. You stand in the greatest jail in the galaxy. No being can escape here. No God, no Giant, no Titan, and certainly no demigod. Tartarus is far too powerful"

"I understand it just fine! I've been down here for three weeks!" Percy realized how stupid that must sound, considering he was unconscious for most of his stay, and the giant before him has most likely been down here for centuries, but he continued regardless. "Damasen, this isn't a negotiable option! My friend's lives could be on the line! My mother's life _is_ on the line!"

"It seems you are at an impasse. You cannot negotiate anything less than your escape, and Tartarus can't negotiate anything less than your stay." Damasen leaned in, looking Percy in his eyes and holding him on the spot. "Perseus, I understand your plight. I understand the pain. But you stand against a task no other has succeeded in. There is a reason there are no songs of heroes escaping this place. There is a reason your father will not come down here to save you. You will be undone by this place."

"So you won't help me?"

"Anything I could do would only delay the inevitable. I'm sorry, but no"

Percy leaned back on the rib-like support of the hut, running the spearhead down riptide in quick snaps. He looked at the fire, suppressing the bubbling urge to make a harsh remark at his only ally. He held the spearhead up, blowing off some dust, which circled into the smoky air of the hut. He got up, finding a relatively straight bone he could use as a shaft.

Percy tinkered with the shaft and spearhead, using the remains of his old shirt to help bind them. He hefted it up. It felt slightly top-heavy in his hands, but a bit of grinding and it'd be almost just right. Percy gave the air a few experimental jabs, making sure the head was nice and secure. He dug in his bag, finding the small rock he had found before tracking down the demigods, and used it to start sanding the shaft.

Looks like he'd be on his own for now.

Unless, of course, Percy could find a way to convince him.

* * *

The large cyclops fell to the ground, wounds and bruises marring his body. His hefty iron armor cracked, and even melted, in multiple places, like he had gone through an overheated trash compactor. He shook as the large drakon before him roared, sending waves of fear down the cyclops' spine. His gaze, full of spots, rose to his master.

The once kind being stood imposingly over him, clad in dark armor with billows of black smoke rolling off him like hurricanes crashing against cities. Skourogios' hard gaze fell on him like an avalanche. If the cyclops was scared of the drakon, he was now shaking like a child at his master. He looked up at Skourogios, trembling.

"M-my l-lord?" The cyclops asked. "I-"

A hand crashed into the cyclops' throat, gripping the air out of his neck.

"Do I look like a fool, young one?" Skourogios asked.

"N-n-no my l-lord" the cyclops choked out.

"Do I look like some tool you can use to climb the ranks?"

"No, my lo-ord!" The hand left the cyclops' throat, and he fell to the ground. A moonlight-silver blade replaced the hand, nicking at the cyclops' skin, and drawing a bit of blood that didn't already stain the ground.

"I do not appreciate liars, young one". The cyclops stayed quiet, shaking. "Do you think Fateontilio could not smell the scent of a demi-god on you? Not only that, but the son of Poseidon, _and_ one blessed by Apollo!"

"My lord, have mercy" The cyclops pleaded, holding his hands up like a beggar.

"Why?" Skourogios asked. "I want one reason not to let Fateontilio eat you marred flesh, to taste the blood of that halfling on your skin. You know he enjoys the blood of Apollo's favored".

"I-I can find him! I know where he's at! I-I can bring him back to you!"

Silence.

The blade slowly lifted from the cyclops' throat, as the black smoke whirled from Skourogios' body, and enveloped the cyclops'. He began screaming, but that was quickly muffled from the fog, as it poured into every part of him, through his mouth, his eyes, his ears. It was like drowning in a swirling storm. He tried to get away, but the smoke kept him there, stood upright, filling him, stretching his bones. After an eternity of torment, the last bit of smoke trailed into his mouth, and the cyclops fell to the ground, coughing.

"You have a week" Skourogios said. "If the demigod is not at my feet in a week, then my power will give you pain beyond understanding" Skourogios' hand shot out, gripping the cyclops' chin. The cyclops' felt his jawbone slowly crack under his master's grip.

"Do you understand me?"

"Y-yes" the cyclops replied, crying.

The grip released, and the cyclops fell to the floor. He would stay there for the next hour, violently convulsing, before he picked himself up off the floor. If you looked into his thoughts, you would see a maelstrom of pain and agony, but above it all, a searing, burning hatred for the demigod that got him into this mess. Oh yes, Skourogios would have the halfing.

Perhaps not in one piece, but he would have him.

* * *

 **There we go! Kind of short, but this is more of an in-between chapter! Reviews, follows, and favorites are all much appreciated. Sorry for the slow updating. College is a bit more important right now. Hoping to get back on this though! By for now!**


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